Prom day a booming industry

WESTPORT, Conn. — Raquel Lucas is spending a small fortune on her senior prom.

Her dress cost $250; her shoes were $100; and there was $60 for a bottle of Christian Dior's J'adore, her favorite perfume. A trip to the beauty salon will cost $70, the limo is $50 a person, and it will cost $90 just to get in the door.

Lucas, 18, who attends Staples High School in Westport, expects to pay more than $700 by the time the evening is over.

"We're going all out this year because it's our last prom," said Lucas, who got a part-time job at a clothing store to help pay for the event.

Almost 20 million students will attend proms this year, with the average 17-year-old spending $638, or more than $1,200 per couple, according to research by Conde Nast, which publishes Your Prom and Modern Bride magazine.

Retailers are pouring millions of dollars into prom advertising. Magazines such as Your Prom, Seventeen magazine's prom issue and YM magazine's special prom book attract millions of readers.

"The prom is recession-proof," said Antonia van der Meer, editor in chief of Your Prom, which is published every January. "Even with the war on terror and the war in Iraq, people go to the prom. It's a feel-good event, and right now people need to feel good."

The industry has grown significantly in the past three to five years in terms of importance, the size of the market and the emphasis teens put on it, van der Meer said.

"It doesn't surprise me one bit that they spend so much money," said Cindy Freeburn, director of communications for Alfred Angelo, a leading prom and bridal dress maker. "The disposable income these kids have access to is mind-boggling."

Your Prom says that of its 5.2 million readers, 55 percent have part-time jobs, earning them an average income of $4,651 a year. Overall, teens spent $172 billion in 2001, with nearly half going toward clothing, jewelry and beauty products, according to Conde Nast research.

"Budget restrictions just aren't a concern for prom consumers like they are at other times of the year," Liebmann said.